Military Manual Code Number Systems

To anyone who has looked at Military manuals the code number systems which they are arranged under is bewildering. This is especially true for anyone who is trying to understand and follow the changes in manuals over the last hundred years. What I hope to do in this short essay is try to clear up some of the confusion, to simplify the discussion we be will only be concerned with U.S.Army manuals and only the essential points of the coding systems will be covered.

General

From the beginning one code number prefix title has been used consistently. Army Regulations (AR’s) which are concerned with the day by day running of the Army. Otherwise manual numbering systems have changed quite a bit. There are often many editions and changes to each manual number and there can be a great deal of difference between the manual editions. So manual FM 21-75 can have five editions covering 45 years of changes in doctrine. In reality each of the editions are more like five different manuals rather than one manual with a five series of changes.

Early Military Manuals

Until the 1890’s there were no army manuals in the current sense. Military manuals before the 1890’s were foreign imports or privately published manuals and textbooks, without any numbering. For all practical purposes they were simply books, with an author and title. From the late 1880 until the end of First World War military manuals were either War Department Documents or Ordnance Department Documents. Both types of documents were numbered consecutively (1,2, 3, etc.) as they appeared with no variations concerning subject matter. But there was often a branch numbering system superimposed on the manual. For example War Department Document No.541 could also be Signal Manual No.3.

War Department Documents were approximately similar to modern Field Manuals with an occasional one concerned with a technical subject like signal communications and were usually hard covered books. Ordnance Department Documents were similar to modern Technical Manuals and could be either hard cover or paper backed. For some great examples of older turn of the century military manuals visit eMilitary Manuals.

After the First World War

Manuals began to be issued in loose leaf form designed to be placed in binders, numbering prefects including TR (Training Regulations), TM (Training Manuals), and TC (Training Circulars), with TR’s being the most common type. There Prefixes were followed by a two to four digit number then a dash followed by a two to three digit number. Like “TR 50-70 or TR 425-30”. The first set of numbers noted the subject while the second set noted the number of the book under the subject. The subject number system was fairly complex. Unfortunately too complex for the length of this essay.

The Technical subjects of the earlier Ordnance Documents were incorporated into the Training regulation system. To see a large collection of WWI era manuals visit us.

The Late 1930’S

The Training Regulations were merged into a series of branch Field Manuals, like Basic Field Manual, Cavalry Field Manual, etc. The Field Manuals of this period did not have a number system like current manuals. Instead FM 21-75 they are titled by subject like “Basic Field Manual, Volume I, Chapter 3”.

World War Two and After

The current U.S.Army manual number system was started at the beginning of the Second World War. The primarily types of manuals became either FM’s (Field Manuals), or TM’s (Technical Manuals), later followed by a bewildering arrangement of lesser Prefixes like TC (Training Circulars). ST (Special Texts), FC (Field Circulars), just to name a few. Field Manuals were usually numbered by a one to two digit number followed by a dash followed by a one to two digit number, like “FM 21-75”, with the first series on numbers being the subject classification of the manual and the second series being the particular manual.

Technical Manuals were numbered at first like FM’s, but because they were vastly more of them by the early 1960’s, they began to be changed to a more complex system. Early TM’s have numbers like “TM 9-2300”. The first number being the subject or branch of the Army. Number “9” means that it is an Ordnance Branch manual. The second series of numbers referring to the particular manual.

The many later TM’s, concerned with single pieces of equipment, especially Ordnance equipment, were numbered like “TM 9-1005-223-12”. The first number refers to the branch. The number “9” means that it is an Ordnance branch document. The second series of numbers refer to the subject type. The third series refers to the particular piece of equipment or subject. The four series on numbers refer to the level of maintenance which the manual is concerned with. With “10-12” being operator and organizational maintenance level, and with higher numbers concerned with a higher level, 20’s being direct support, 30’s being general support.

While this essay can only give the reader a brief snapshot of the coding system, I hope that it will clear up some confusion. Thanks to military-manuals.com for this great essay.

Why Military Manuals?

Military manuals are a great resource for military and civilian use. They are loaded with a huge amounts of information. New military manuals are useful explanations of what is the current doctrine. Old manuals are sources of historical doctrine, procedures and techniques. They are often a great source of lost knowledge which can be reapplied, saving the writer from having to completely rewrite and entire manual. Manuals in general are useful for many different types of people when properly read and used. Most military manuals have very short working life spans. Field manuals are often replaced every ten years or much less depending on the subject. Technical manuals are in print as long as the army has the piece of equipment it is covering still in inventory. Once the equipment is retired from general use, then the manual is discarded.

Military Manuals Many Uses

Many people can find military manuals are very useful sources of military and other government information. This includes military personnel, military historians, law enforcement people, collectors, survivalists and even civilians. For military personnel their information can often prove to be useful in many circumstances; manuals are their guidelines, which coordinate them with other soldiers and old manuals, can supply them many useful miscellaneous techniques which are not commonly used. For the historian, military manuals are an invaluable statement of the doctrine of the time they were written, a record of the capabilities and uses of equipment, and a record of how everything was supposed to work. To law enforcement people, military manuals are sources of useful military techniques which can be selectively applied. For the collector, old manuals are often the only record left on how their old military equipment works and how to maintain and repair it. For survivalists, they are sources of hard to find information that can be applied to the survival community. For civilians, military manuals are over all guides on how things are supposed to work.

The Proper Way to Read and Use Military Manuals

Manuals were never intended to be read like a regular novel. They are meant be to used when needed, and are not meant to be read for pleasure. They were either meant to be guidelines or to give specific instructions. For example, Field manuals are meant to be guidelines on how to do something, or to perform a task. They are also designed to keep everyone working together, so everyone has some idea of what to expect of people on their own side. Technical manuals were meant to be specific instructions and should be followed exactly. Here at eMilitary Manuals, you have found the number one source for all of your military manual needs.

Remember what military manuals are for and you can get good use out of them. They are a rare and valuable resource and should be collected while you can.

Dennis Freed-www.emilitarymanuals.com

Welcome to eMilitary Manuals first blog. In the coming months and years I hope to post comments on any an all military related subjects and my opinions on just about anything in general. I have been running the website for almost 5 years now and want to share some of my experiences and knowledge with the public.